Topic - Midwestern Viewpoint of the Civil Rights Movement in the 60's

Subject - Joey's Grandma


I found it very interesting that though there was much segregation in the south (big cities and small towns) the segregation in the north was mainly limited to the big cities such as Chicago and that in the rural areas blacks blended right into the community. The importance of the media and the publicity of the events proved to be crucial to publicize the big stories that would have otherwise taken weeks to learn about. It was shocking to learn that the majority of information came from the TV and that the media was very unbiased back then compared to nowadays. However, black children still didn't receive the equality that adults did unless they were talented in music, sports, or some other extracurricular activity.

I find it quite inspiring that all of the major events that happened, such as the assassination of MLK and the publishing of To Kill A Mockingbird, all had huge impacts even on people who lived in rural areas of the country. I also enjoyed how a television show such as "Roots" could have an effect on the nations especially since television at the time was still somewhat new. I found it really nice that African Americans and White people interacted at the time in the Midwest. Most rural areas in the Midwest appeared to be very desegregated except for some public facilites such as a church which was described in the answer.